Creative Greenius

MARCH 31, 2009

I have to admit that for the first few hours of day one in PV101: Introduction to Photovoltaics I was dazed and confused by all the foreign concepts I was trying to grasp at once. I wasn’t feeling very Creative or very Greenius. I was feeling mostly dumb ass. Understanding Ohm’s Law of resistance, the basics of current, amps and volts, not to mention the concepts of alternating current, Kirchhoff’s Circuit laws and the many fun equations that spell it all out - if you happen

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Solar Installation Grid San Diego 247

Green Car Congress

MARCH 15, 2009

Flight Design GmbH will debut a hybrid engine concept for light aircraft at the upcoming Aero show in Friedrichshafen, Germany (2-5 April). Flight Design developed the concept engine over the past two years with Franz Aircraft Engines. The concept is based on a Rotax aircraft engine together with an electric booster. The very high boost power of the electric motor is only used for take-off and climb.

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Electric Cars are for Girls

MARCH 20, 2009

Has the best electric sports car already been made? Interview with Paul Liddle, electric Porsche builder in Florida.

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Revenge of the Electric Car

MARCH 12, 2009

Stefano Paris at the November 19th, 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show unveiling of the MINI E. 200amp main electrical utility panel. If you’ve been following the BMW MINI E program unveiled officially on November 19th, 2008 at the Los Angeles Auto Show you’ll know the process for being selected as a potential MINI E driver is a multistep one. The window to apply for a lease of a MINI E was from November 19th to December 24th, 2008 via an hour long online questionnaire.

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Speaker: tara

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 30, 2009

Researchers at Penn State University, led by Dr. Bruce Logan, have found that methane can be directly produced using a biocathode containing methanogens in electrochemical systems (abiotic anode) or microbial electrolysis cells (MECs; biotic anode) by a process called electromethanogenesis. The results show that electromethanogenesis can be used to convert electrical current produced from renewable energy sources (such as wind, solar, or biomass) into a biofuel (methane) as well as serving as a

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Creative Greenius

MARCH 5, 2009

The more time I spend with Lillian Light the more I admire, respect and flat out like her. Our relationship started about a month ago when we spent an evening together carpooling to a UCLA workshop on communication climate change that we both participated in. I wrote about our experience at the time in Greenius On The Green Scene The South Bay Report.

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Light Climate Change 2001 Environment 236

Green Car Congress

MARCH 4, 2009

Multiair system components. Click to enlarge. Fiat Group and Fiat Powertrain Technology introduced their new air management technology Multiair at the Geneva Motor Show. Multiair is an electro-hydraulic valve-timing system that provides dynamic and direct control of air and combustion, cylinder by cylinder and stroke by stroke. Fiat expects that Multiair, with direct control of the air through the intake engine valves without using the throttle, can help reduce fuel consumption by up to 10% for

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Downsizing Gasoline Fuel Economy Engine 210

Green Car Congress

MARCH 26, 2009

Chemists at United Environment and Energy LLC have developed an energy-efficient, high throughput continuous flow fixed-bed reactor technology for cost-effective algae oil biodiesel production. A report on what they termed “ the first economical way to produce biodiesel from algae oil ” was presented at the 237 th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Oil Convert Utah Environment 207

Green Car Congress

MARCH 5, 2009

A new study concludes that, depending on prior land use, carbon (C) releases from the soil after planting corn for ethanol may in some cases completely offset C gains attributed to biofuel generation for at least 50 years. Based on an analysis of 142 soil studies, the study also found that soil carbon sequestered by setting aside former agricultural land was greater than the carbon credits generated by planting corn for ethanol on the same land for 40 years and had equal or greater economic net

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Climate Argentina Carbon Universal 207

Green Car Congress

MARCH 2, 2009

Magna Steyr introduced the mila ev concept at the Geneva Motor Show 2009. The core of the mila ev is a fully integrated electric vehicle platform which could be used by an OEM as the basis for production-vehicle development of a full battery electric vehicle, or with natural gas, fuel cell or hybrid drive, Magna said. The mila ev concept. Click to enlarge.

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Concept Lithium Ion Energy Storage 2009 207

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 31, 2009

Capstone Turbine Corporation has demonstrated with its 30 kW microturbine emission levels compliant with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California Air Resources Board (CARB) 2010 requirements for Heavy Duty Diesel Engine (HDDE). Tests were conducted at Capstone’s development test facilities in Van Nuys, California. Internal combustion diesel engine manufacturers have been challenged for the last several years to develop technology improvements that reduce emissions to levels speci

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2010 EPA Diesel Emissions 199

Green Car Congress

MARCH 27, 2009

Embedded metal oxide compounds for Li-ion cathode material. Source: BASF. Click to enlarge. Under the leadership of BASF Future Business GmbH, eighteen partners from industry and science have formed the cross-sector consortium “HE-Lion” to develop and bring to market safer, more affordable high-energy lithium-ion batteries over the next four to six years for use in plug-in hybrid automobiles and electric-vehicles.

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Li-ion Lithium Ion Energy Batteries 199

Green Car Congress

MARCH 1, 2009

by Jack Rosebro. Mountain snowpack in the Great basin and major water supply basins for California. Source: USDA. Click to enlarge. Faced with three straight years of drought and an uncertain agricultural water supply, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency Friday, announcing that statewide water rationing could be instituted as early as the end of next month. “ Despite the recent rain and snow ,” the governor’s office warned, “ cumulative water deficit is so lar

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California Los Angeles Water Climate Change 199

Green Car Congress

MARCH 31, 2009

The test process for Honda’s Brain-Machine Interface technology including conceptual diagram of the brain activity measuring device, example of obtained data, and example of distinguishing results. Click to enlarge. Honda Research Institute Japan Co., Ltd. (HRI-JP), a subsidiary of Honda R&D Co., Ltd., Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR) and Shimadzu Corporation have collaboratively developed what they believe is the world’s first Brain Machine Interface (BMI)

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 30, 2009

Proton Energy Systems has demonstrated more than 18,000 hours of hydrogen generation at 2,400 psi, without any external mechanical compression, using its advanced high pressure, proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis technology. The 2,400 psi milestone was achieved while at the same time also increasing the hydrogen production by a factor of four from previous high pressure hydrogen generation systems.

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Energy Hydrogen Production Commercial 186

Green Car Congress

MARCH 29, 2009

The Detroit Free Press reports that the Obama Administration has asked GM CEO Rick Wagoner to resign, which Wagoner agreed to do today. President Obama will unveil his new rescue plan for GM and Chrysler in a White House ceremony on Monday. Not since President Franklin Roosevelt considered taking control of Ford Motor Co. in 1943 from a failing Henry Ford has the federal government pushed for such sway in the management of Detroit’s automakers.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 28, 2009

Shanghai Daily. Geely Automobile Holdings is buying the bankrupt Australian transmission supplier Drivetrain System International (DSI), becoming the first Chinese automaker to make an overseas acquisition during the financial crisis. DSI produces four-speed and six speed automatic transmissions for supply to Ford Motor Corp, Chrysler and South Korea’s Ssangyong Motor Corp, with an annual output of 180,000 units.

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Buy Chrysler 2009 Chinese 186

Green Car Congress

MARCH 27, 2009

Two smart2go units in Austin. Click to enlarge. Daimler will bring its car2go mobility concept ( earlier post ) to the US in a pilot phase to start this fall in Austin, Texas with an initial fleet of about 200 smart fortwo mhd vehicles with start/stop functionality. The US introduction coincides with the expansion of the pilot in Ulm, Germany, where the company opens the service to the public on 26 March after the internal test which started last October.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 26, 2009

Tesla Motors Inc. unveiled its long-anticipated second model, the four-door Model S battery-electric sedan. The Model S will carry an initial price of $57,400; applying the new $7,500 Federal tax credit for plug-ins will drop the effective price to $49,900. Production is slated to begin in 2011, assuming the funding for the plant is in place. The Tesla Model S.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 24, 2009

A new paper from the Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center concludes that while a market-based mechanism (e.g. cap and trade or a carbon tax) is a likely key part of a US strategy to reduce carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions, such a market-based approach alone will not induce the investments in long-lived technology required to achieve a 50 to 80% reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide by mid-century.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 23, 2009

The Tata Nano. Click to enlarge. Tata Motors held the commercial launch of the low-priced Tata Nano—the much-anticipated Rs 1-Lakh (about US$2,000) “People’s Car”. ( Earlier post.) The Tata Nano is BS-III compliant and comes with an all-new 2-cylinder aluminium MPFI 624 cc petrol engine mated to a four-speed gear box and will be available in three variants.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 12, 2009

Norway-based electric car maker Think plans to open a new manufacturing plant and technical center in the United States. The company is currently in discussions with eight states, including Michigan, hoping to host the facility. US production is expected to start in 2010, with the first-year volume of 2,500 units being available to pilot and demonstration fleet projects.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 10, 2009

Researchers at the Carnegie Institution at Stanford University and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem warn that if atmospheric carbon dioxide reaches double pre-industrial levels, coral reefs can be expected to not just stop growing, but also to begin dissolving. Their study will be published online 13 March in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 9, 2009

The BLUECAR. Click to enlarge. Pininfarina and Bolloré, which set up a 50-50 joint venture at the beginning of 2008 with the purpose of designing, developing, manufacturing and distributing an electric car, displayed the latest version of the Pininfarina BLUECAR at the Geneva Motor Show on the Véhicules Électriques Pininfarina-Bolloré stand. ( Earlier post.).

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Pininfarina Polymer Recharge Italy 186

Green Car Congress

MARCH 2, 2009

by Mike Millikin and Jack Rosebro. The 2010 Prius. Click to enlarge. In preparation for the global launch of the much-anticipated 2010 Prius hybrid, informally referred to as “Generation III” or “Gen III”, Toyota has been staging a series of media briefings, bringing in key engineers from Japan as well as its North American technical center in Southern California, to discuss technical improvements of the new hybrid over its immediate predecessor, the 2004-2009 Generation II Prius.

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Prius 2010 Toyota Hybrid 186

Green Car Congress

MARCH 31, 2009

The Solo EV. Click to enlarge. UK-based Optare PLC has introduced the Solo EV, a full battery-electric bus. The Solo EV is a progression of the established Solo family of buses. The Solo EV is available in lengths of 8.1m, 8.8m and 9.5m and widths of either 2.3m or 2.5m. Replacing the usual diesel engine is an all-new electric drive, featuring an Enova Systems P120 AC induction motor rated at 120 kW and powered by two banks of Valence Lithium Ion Phosphate batteries.

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Batteries Battery Electric Electrical 170

Green Car Congress

MARCH 31, 2009

Following the short address on Monday during which President Barack Obama outlined the next steps for GM and Chrysler ( earlier post ), the White House posted summaries of the Presidential Auto Task Force’s assessment of the business plans provided by the two struggling automakers, which led to the terms that are currently unfolding. Among the highlights of the brief summaries was the conclusion that while the Chevy Volt extended range electric vehicle holds promise, “ it will likely be too expe

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Volt Plug-in GM Chrysler 170

Green Car Congress

MARCH 30, 2009

Chart of the proposed North American Emission Control Area. Source: EPA Click to enlarge. The US and Canada have submitted a proposal to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for the designation of an Emission Control area (ECA) around their coastlines in which stringent international emission controls would apply to ocean-going ships. The proposed area of the ECA includes waters adjacent to the Pacific coast, the Atlantic/Gulf coast and the eight main Hawaiian Islands.

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Canada Emissions Mariner EPA 170

Green Car Congress

MARCH 30, 2009

Building on the idea of using DNA to link up nanoparticles, scientists at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have designed a molecular assembly line for predictable, high-precision nano-construction. Such reliable, reproducible nanofabrication is essential for exploiting the unique properties of nanoparticles in applications such as biological sensors and devices for converting sunlight to electricity.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 28, 2009

The proposed CO 2 and H 2 pathway (bottom) rather than the traditional CO and H 2 pathway (top) can improve efficiency and reduce CO 2 emissions by 15%. Credit: Adapted by P. Huey/Science. Click to enlarge. Researchers from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), South Africa and Rutgers University are proposing new Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) reaction chemistry and process designs that they say could increase F-T process efficiency and reduce CO 2 emissions by 15% compared to the conventional pro

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Emissions Coal CO2 South Africa 170

Green Car Congress

MARCH 26, 2009

A cross-party resolution adopted by the European Parliament (EP) calls for measures to support job creation in the European automotive industry, and to encourage the development of “ green technologies ”, with which there is “ significant potential for job creation.in the automotive sector ”. The resolution was adopted by 413 votes to 44 with 13 abstentions.

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 25, 2009

Europe must dramatically cut its water consumption and use water more efficiently if it is to avoid the worst impacts of water shortage, the European Environment Agency ( EEA ) warns in a new report, “Water resources across Europe—confronting water scarcity and drought”. “ The balance between water demand and availability has reached a critical level in many areas of Europe, the results of over-abstraction and prolonged periods of low rainfall or drought ,” reads the report, which was launched a

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Green Car Congress

MARCH 25, 2009

Transparent view of Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid. Battery pack and hydrogen tank are at the rear. Click to enlarge. Mazda Motor Corporation has begun commenced commercial leasing of the Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid ( earlier post ), a hydrogen hybrid vehicle that offers substantially improved performance due to the addition of a hybrid system.

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